Twelve photos in twelve hours on 12/12/12. I took longer than twelve hours, but I got all twelve before I went to bed. Most pictures were taken with Instagram, but some were done with Hipstamatic. You can hover over each picture to view the caption if you don’t want to click over to Flickr.

#12photos - fun stuff in my cubicle (Don't worry. This will be the last pic taken from the office.) #Hipstamatic#Chunky#Sugar by MPriceMitchell, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/mpricemitchell/8269232123/">#12photos - fun stuff in my cubicle (Don't worry. This will be the last pic taken from the office.) #Hipstamatic#Chunky#Sugar" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8498/8269232123_22e6974fc8.jpg" width="500" height="500" />

4pm

#12photos - I've wanted a picture of this sign ever since I started commuting. by MPriceMitchell, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/mpricemitchell/8270297252/">#12photos - I've wanted a picture of this sign ever since I started commuting." src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8074/8270297252_ca7fc70aaa.jpg" width="500" height="500" />

#12photos - art on the table next to me. by MPriceMitchell, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/mpricemitchell/8269233273/">#12photos - art on the table next to me." src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8060/8269233273_4ca7bdcda2.jpg" width="500" height="500" />

7pm

#12photos - a little late. Almost time for bed. by MPriceMitchell, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/mpricemitchell/8270298250/">#12photos - a little late. Almost time for bed." src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8342/8270298250_b9bf843aac.jpg" width="500" height="500" />

I came back from the third annual Blissdom Canada inspired to write more (thank you Haley and Ali). I also got ideas and tips for improving my iPhoneography skills (thank you Schmutzie). I had told Haley that I needed to ‘kick my own ass a bit’ and I think this conference has helped me do that. I’d like to thank all the organizers and speakers for all the work they did to make it a success.

(An aside, when I told Sean that the conference was at the Sheraton Centre downtown, he looked at me and asked “are you staying at the Sheraton Hotel in Canada? Have you been selected to represent the school at the National Grammar Rodeo?Sean makes me laugh. This line is from Season 7, episode 21 of the Simpsons. I couldn’t find a video clip of it so you’ll have to catch the episode in syndication sometime.)

I was thrilled to be able to tell Susan Cain how fascinating I found her book in person at her book signing. When I showed her my Kobo with her book on the screen, she told me that it was the first time she had seen the ereader version of her book. To think she had to come to another country to see it! That makes me smile.

I also stayed in a hotel room all by myself for the first time. This is a big deal for me.I wrote about wanting to do this back in January 2011 but haven’t been able to make it happen until now. When I bought my conference ticket, I booked the hotel room that day, knowing I could always cancel, but also knowing that I wouldn’t. I’m a person who needs her alone time and I don’t get nearly enough of it. (Funny, I’ve written about this before too.) As much as I was enjoying the conference and all the learning I was doing, I couldn’t wait for that window between sessions where I could check in to my room, dump my stuff and sit down in the quiet for a few minutes before I got back to the noise of hundreds of people at a conference.

I finally got that opportunity, but it was cut short because it was in the window of time before the aforementioned Susan Cain went up on stage to speak about introversion. There’s a joke in here, right? I was not missing that talk, so I put my stuff down and zipped back downstairs and took part in the rest of the conference. I did not regret my choice. I learned from all of the speakers, and the questions that were asked of them.

I had considered skipping the closing party to enjoy my purchased solitude. I didn’t have a costume and I had been stuffed up most of the day so I wasn’t sure I should be unleashing karaoke on anyone*. My need for a few drinks and a few laughs (and let’s face it, the karaoke) trumped my need for solitude at that point and I had a good time with everyone. Of course, I lived up to my introvert ideals by having the best moments when listening to conversations and occasionally contributing versus cutting it up on the dance floor. (Dancing can be fun, but it’s not my strong suit.) At the end of the night, I went back to my quiet room, had a great sleep in a king-sized bed and lounged around Sunday morning before I packed up, checked out and went home.

So Blissdom gave me a lot this year – more than what was on the website and in the conference brochure. I’m saying out loud that I plan to make the most of what I’ve been given. I hope you do too. How do you plan to improve your blog or other online work?

* I don’t get my love for karaoke either. I am totally on Team Introvert, but for some reason, I love doing karaoke. I think it’s because it’s a forgiving medium. You can be bad and people will still cheer you on. My experiences around karaoke really need a post of their own.

Via Flickr:
I took these pictures of Flora for the #aprilphotoaday challenge taking place right now on Instagram. The theme was “someone who makes you happy”. When I told Flora that I needed her help and explained the photo challenge, she shouted “Me! I make you happy!”

And she does.

For the pictures she decided she wanted to twirl like a ballerina. The actual twirling pics are a bit blurry so I’m glad I caught her up close.

I’m also very grateful to know that she is very, very loved.

(The one on the top made the challenge. You can follow my Instagram feed here, even if you don’t use the app.)

At nearly three and a half years old, Flora has figured out the basics of my smartphone and it’s kind of spooky to watch her interact with it. She can now unlock it, find the kids game folder and load up her favourite drawing app by herself (DoodleBuddy if you’re interested). She doesn’t always remember the swipe-to-scroll part, but she can sometimes switch apps without help.

She got pretty good at the easy levels of Cut the Rope so that was fun for us to play together. (We both think Om Nom is cute.)

She has also taken to taking pictures with my phone. I have to be careful or five minutes of picture-taking leaves me with far too many out-of-focus pictures of the floor and the random things on it, herself, and really awkward pics of Sean and/or I.

I’ve saved a few of those for posterity but I tend to prune them pretty quickly. I do come across the occasional hidden gem.

This is Bunny, Flora’s number one lovey. She also goes by the names Princess Bunny and Bunbun. She’s been a part of the family since Flora was about eight months old. I bought her to give Flora something to snuggle at night. She is now a part of the family and very loved.

Flora snapped this picture of Bunny earlier tonight when she had commandeered my phone for games and picture-taking. She carefully propped Bunny up on the chair and took about ten different pictures that were all nearly identical. I picked the best one and fed it through the Pixlr-o-matic app to give it some depth. The composition is all Flora – no cropping.

About this site

hellomelissa.net is the personal site for Melissa Price-Mitchell. Melissa has written online about her life and issues important to her for over fourteen years. She lives in Pickering, Ontario with her husband Sean and her daughter Flora.